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Saturday, September 10, 2016

Living the Pantry Lifestyle - What if the Manure Does Hit the Fan

October 17, 1962: U-2 photograph of first IRBM site found under construction

There have been many books through the years which deeply impacted my life. However, there was only one chapter of a book which had that affect. It was in the mid to late 1970s and the book was How to Prosper During the Coming Bad Years.

Howard Ruff was best known as an investments advisor but in this book, he included a chapter that had nothing to do with gold or silver or safe places for one's retirement funds. The chapter was all about investing in food, water, and essential items... or what I now call deepening the pantry.

He tells the story of driving on a highway in the early 1960s when an emergency alert came on the radio, announcing what we now call the Cuban Missile Crisis. He stopped at the first payphone he could find, called his wife, and told her to get to the grocery store now. He said he knew if he waited until he arrived home, the grocery store shelves would be empty.

He was correct. The grocery shelves were empty when he arrived back home.

Now, he admits to the irony of having to call his wife to stock up immediately. He is a Mormon. Their religion highly recommends members having a year's worth of food and essentials put back "just in case".

So... what would make a Mormon disregard this suggestion? He didn't really think anything bad would ever happen that would require spending money on stocking up. History tells us we were so close to nuclear war breaking out between the United States and Russia that it was nothing less than a miracle nothing occurred. I'd say it was a miracle, God wasn't ready for the destruction of the world.

I was raised in a home where both of my parents had gone through the Great Depression. My mother came away from that experience (as did many people from that generation) with a profound emotional need to keep the pantry as full as possible. Not to mention a dozen or so cans of Aqua Net hairspray all over the house. So I was used to this way of thinking but that chapter still woke me up to... possibilities.

Perhaps because I have such vivid memories of the Cuban Missile Crisis. Not the actual event, for I was only a child. But memories of a recurring nightmare brought about by that event. It is as clear today as it was when I was eight years old.

That one chapter started the additional research and reading which eventually led to becoming an Administrator of a section of a preparedness forum in the 1990s and eventually to writing to you each Saturday. Pretty profound stuff, I'd say. In only one chapter.

The title of this post is probably obvious to most readers, definitely to everyone who reads preparedness info. It is a more ummm... ladylike?... version of When the Sh*t Hits the Fan. Which is the preparedness way of saying... a real honest to goodness life changing crisis.

I can think of two such events which affected all of our country since the millennia began. The first was 911, whose "anniversary" we will remember on Sunday. It not only changed the U.S. but the entire world. The second was Hurricane Katrina, which directly affected the Gulf States but indirectly affected other regions of the country when there were shortages of various items.

Of course, it doesn't take a national emergency to be relieved one has food, water, and other essentials on hand. While it is difficult to believe with the recent 100+ heat index days, the chance of winter storms are not too far off in the future for a great deal of this country. Not to mention a multitude of other possibilities which could stop the flow of transportation of our food trucks.

Am I playing Chicken Little? Well... yes. Not to cause fear but to remind all of us... you and me... that there are all kinds of possibilities for cow doo doo to hit the proverbial fan. Quite often with little or no warning.

There is a part of human nature which makes us reason this... if we don't prepare for an emergency then it will not happen. Some odd section of our brain seems to think it is only when we are prepared that an emergency will occur.

Well, ask everyone who built bomb shelters during the Cold War if that is true.

What is Truth is this... we are living in dangerous days. Even if one does not believe these are End of Days events as prophesied in the Bible, even then... one has to admit the world is crazy weird.

The leaders of Iran are not shy about saying they want to kill Israel and the United States. Northern Korea's unstable leadership just tested another nuclear device. ISIS is on the move and Russia is in the Middle East. The fact that Russia is in the Middle East gives me shivers, not of fear but that the Lord's return could be near.

My friends, I don't want to cause fear in anyone. I'm not afraid. Oh yes, there is a little anxiety when I hear possible scenarios but when one reads the Word and talks to God and awaits His peace that passes understanding... that is the best anxiety reliever ever.

We are not to trust in our preparations. We are to trust in God and His promises. But if He gives us warnings, if He has been opening our eyes to what is going on in the world around us... if we take His warnings seriously as did Joseph and are obedient to those gentle nudges He has been giving to prepare the best we can with what we have... that obedience may be what helps you go through a crisis far easier than you would if you didn't obey.

Not everyone can do a lot but everyone can do a little... and every little bit of preparing for possibilities adds up over time. Not peace in preps but peace brought about by the Prince of Peace and being obedient to what He is nudging you to do.

You know those nudges. I don't have to tell you for you most likely have felt them from time to time. Just a little here and there and if He wants you to do more... He provides.

These thoughts were inspired by a blog post.. here. Interesting advice.

4 comments:

I live on the Texas Gulf Coast and preparations for hurricanes are absolutely necessary. After Hurricane Ike, we were without power for only 4 days but many in this area didn't get power restored for 2 weeks. Our generator kept the refrigerator and the fans going. We had plenty of food and water on hand. It wasn't fun but we got through it just fine.

Oddly enough, I have a prepper step-family member who has given me a lengthy list to fill. Tools. So it might also be good to think about any tools you may need, beyond a flashlight and batteries. Now I am listening for His voice, but not planning to head out as your prepper friend suggests. Times may certainly get rougher before we get all the way home, but preparing at that level is way beyond my scope. That said, I am going to stock up ahead of winter storms and, if I get a nudge, I hope that I listen unlike a friend of mine who just told me last night that she had not listened to one of those nudges and would up tied up at an accident scene for over two hours. If she had listened she would have gotten off at the exit that was suggested in her thoughts. Then she told me the old joke (new to me): When we speak to God, it is called prayer; when God speaks to us, it is called schizophrenia. Except that God does speak to us!

I've been trying to deepen my pantry but there is always this feeling that it's still not enough. Maybe there is a list somewhere that I am missing. I have worked on adding water (thanks to your post) and I added canned meat to the pantry, too.

I hope your foot is healing and doing better. I continue to pray for you.